A disconsolate Banyana Banyana flew into OR Tambo International Airport from Ghana on Monday morning after their final charge to qualify for the 2008 Beijing Olympics was dashed following their 2-1 loss to the Black Queens in Accra on Sunday.
“We played well,” said the country’s senior women’s soccer team Manager, Fran Hilton-Smith. “We should have easily won, but we just couldn’t score.”
Banyana’s final Olympic hopes depended on away wins against Ghana on Sunday, and Nigeria in February, with some other favourable results in matches between the remaining teams, but their loss to Ghana spelt an end to this campaign in no uncertain terms.
The match opened well for South Africa, with scoring dynamo Veronica Phewa opening the scoreboard in Banyana’s favour midway through the first half, only for the Queens to retaliate immediately to level scores.
A first-half injury to premier senior goalkeeper Phindile Nkosi forced her substitution with U20 rising star Mandy de Arouja, who followed her sterling work against Germany with a solid performance in her debut for the country’s senior women’s side.
“Mandy […] played very well for a debut,” remarked Hilton-Smith, “Against a very strong team, she really did well.” De Arouja joined her U20 team-mates Merry Ntsweng (defender) and Nothando Vilakazi (defender / midfielder) in the squad for the Ghana encounter.
Ghana finalised matters with a further goal in the dying moments of the game, a tight top left-hand corner strike which would have left any keeper standing, to clean the opposition up 2-1 in pursuit of their Olympic hopes.
In the remaining away match against Nigeria in February, there is every chance that the three junior members may be joined in the senior squad by further of the U20 World Cup hopefuls.
The encounter will be a formality, and coaching staff have indicated a willingness to expose their junior charges to as much international experience as possible, in advance of qualification matches for Chile’s 2008 FIFA U20 Women’s World Cup.
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